The fraternity meeting is dreaded by a lot of chapters. The reason is quite simple. This turns into another commitment that a brother has to do instead of wants to do. To alleviate that, you must be prepared for every meeting. Winging it is never acceptable.
In your preparation, you must focus the purpose of the meeting. Most times, it is just going to be to share information. Other times though, you will be voting on pledges and rushees which could take forever if you aren’t prepared. The meeting should never be used as a public forum to air grievances. Nothing good comes from a meeting designed to clear the air. Avoid those at all costs.
All fraternity meetings should be less than one hour and held in a location convenient to the brotherhood. Often, fraternities will conduct their meetings in a room that is too small to accommodate the entire brotherhood. Too many people for too small a space will force people to sit on the floor. Just about everyone will be uncomfortable, which will significantly hurt the productivity of the meeting. Do everyone a favor and reserve a classroom on campus for your meetings if you do not have a suitable location at your fraternity house.
A final critical role of the president is to realize when to stop a discussion. Often, a discussion will inevitably lead to the same points being said over and over by different brothers. The president should notice when this happens, and be quick to cut it off to save everyone’s time.
To learn more, check out our most in-depth article on being a fraternity president: How To Be a Great Fraternity President